Gwinnett parents accused of starving autistic teen

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga - Police say a 15-year-old austic girl is recovering after her parents held her in a small room and didn’t feed her.

Police said the teen showed signs of other abuse, as well. Police believe the girl, weighing only 60 pounds, was kept in a closet-type area of a house that was only 2 by 2 feet. Her mother, 35-year-old Jade Jacobs, was behind bars and authorities are looking for her stepfather.

“That breaks my heart,” neighbor Jalysma Humphries said.

“It reeked of feces and urine, and the floor was sticky apparently,” said Gwinnett County Police Cpl. Ed Ritter.

Doctors say the autistic victim had bruises all over her body.

The apparent abuse was noticed when the girl’s mother took her to Scottish Rite Hospital and told doctors she, “could not do it anymore.”

Doctors said they also noticed wounds indicating she had been restrained. They said they believe the abuse had been going on for a long period of time for the sores to develop.

Jacobs was jailed on child cruelty and false imprisonment charges. Detectives have charged her husband, William Brown, as well, but officers are still looking for him.

No one answered the door when Channel 2's Tony Thomas knocked Monday. Neighbors said the family just moved into the home a few weeks ago.

“It’s heartbreaking because, how could you do that to your child, your blood?” Humphries said.